Bijao

Pampano, Calathea lutea (iNaturalist link) is called Bijao in Spanish (common name) though my gardener calls it “Bijagua” which is name also used for a similar big-leaf plant that in English is called Rattlesnake Plant, with a flower like the rattles of a rattlesnake, while this plant has flowers sort of like cigars, giving it the English common names of Cigar Plant (my blog post in March showing the “cigar” flower) or Cigar Calathea. Back then the wind had shredded these big beautiful leaves which look nicer now. These leaves are used by some restaurants to wrap food or serve food on.

Bijao or Cigar Plant, Calathea lutea, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica seen from drive above my garden.
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Green Pastures

“He maketh me to lie down in green pastures” (Psalm 23).

Green Pasture Vista from my terrace, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

I thank God daily for allowing me to live in a peaceful place surrounded by nature and the great outdoors with unlimited aspects of nature to photograph. Praise God from who all blessings flow!

“How many are your works, LORD! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures”. ~Psalm 104:24

And of course I have a Cows Gallery of my photos from all over Costa Rica. 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

October Flowers

I saved what photos of flowers I made in my garden this month to share all at once on the last day of October. So below this introductory photo for the emailed version of the post is a gallery of 14 different flowers, just one shot of each species with 2 of those being wildflowers or “weed flowers” some will say. 🙂 That includes the intro photo below! Enjoy! As I have enjoyed the flowers and remember that I have a photo gallery of “My Home Gardens” (linked) that I keep adding photos to every month, thus it is always fresh or has new photos. 🙂

Red Tasselflower – Emilia fosbergii
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Chestnut-colored Woodpecker male

Photographed on my last morning in Tortuguero (yesterday) and these are probably my favorite bird photos bird photos from this trip. 🙂 Chestnut-colored Woodpecker, Celeus castaneus (linked to my gallery. I’ve seen this unusual woodpecker only one other time and that was in the South Caribbean, at Manzanillo. Tortuguero is in the North Caribbean. It is found from Mexico to Panama. And this is my first time to see a woodpecker eating a flower! 🙂

Chestnut-colored Woodpecker, Tortuga Lodge, Tortuguero National Park, Limón, Costa Rica
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Banded Tigerwing

One of the lesser-seen butterflies is this Banded Tigerwing, Aeria eurimedia (my gallery link) found only in Central America and Northern South America. I think it is a handsome butterfly and I almost used one of my photos of it on my ’23 Christmas Card! 🙂

Banded Tigerwing, Tortuguero National Park, Limón, Costa Rica
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Hidden-ray Skipper

Is another new species for me this month, right here in my own garden! And I’ve had two sightings of this “another brown Skipper!” 🙂

Hidden-ray Skipper, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

It is said to be found from the southwestern U.S. to Argentina, but only two of us have posted photos on iNaturalist CR and only two on BAMONA. So it must be a little rare! 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

Laverna Metalmark

What I (and others) have been calling “Rounded Metalmark,” I now believe are Calephelis laverna (scientific name), Laverna Metalmark, Calephelis laverna (my gallery link). A Google AI summary of searches on the differences in Rounded and Laverna Metalmarks show the wing patterns to be almost identical with possibly “minor differences in genitalia and primary difference being the geographic distribution.” With Rounded Metalmarks found in Texas and Mexico and Laverna Metalmark (some sites use just “Calephelis laverna”) residing in Central America and parts of South America, especially noted in Costa Rica by the AI. Thus I am moving all of my Rounded Metalmarks to Laverna. Here are two photos of the one seen in my Garden Wednesday (side view & top view) . . .

Laverna Metalmark (Calephelis laverna), Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica
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Tropical Buckeye

Another favorite that is not seen every day in my garden is the Tropical buckeye, Junonia zonalis (my gallery link with better images). This first one seen since May this year and not as good photos as others in the gallery.

Tropical Buckeye, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica
Tropical Buckeye, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

¡Feliz Día de la Madre a las madres de Costa Rica!